LAUSR

A new analytical nonmodal approach to investigate the plasma instabilities driven by sheared current is presented and applied to the analysis of the linear evolution of modified Simon-Hoh (MSH) instability of a plasma in an inhomogeneous electric field. We found analytically a strong nonmodal growth for this instability which is missed completely in the normal mode analysis. It dominates the normal mode growth when the shearing rate of the current velocity is above the growth rate of the MSH instability with a uniform current. It also includes the nonmodal growth for subcritical perturbations, which do not develop in plasmas with uniform Hall current.A new analytical nonmodal approach to investigate the plasma instabilities driven by sheared current is presented and applied to the analysis of the linear evolution of modified Simon-Hoh (MSH) instability of a plasma in an inhomogeneous electric field. We found analytically a strong nonmodal growth for this instability which is missed completely in the normal mode analysis. It dominates the normal mode growth when the shearing rate of the current velocity is above the growth rate of the MSH instability with a uniform current. It also includes the nonmodal growth for subcritical perturbations, which do not develop in plasmas with uniform Hall current.